


pretending that you know where we’re supposed to go

by gilligankane



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-30
Updated: 2017-06-30
Packaged: 2018-11-21 07:50:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11353059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gilligankane/pseuds/gilligankane
Summary: Waverly takes a deep breath and holds it for a moment, her eyes drifting to Nicole's mouth. She told Wynonna they were fine, it was fine, but she hasn't kissed Nicole in seven days; she hasn't hugged her or touched her or spoken to her in seven days. That feels anything but fine.





	pretending that you know where we’re supposed to go

**Author's Note:**

> I just, this started as "Nicole Haught, Everyday Hero" and it devolved from there into this 10k disaster. I make apologies, but not to you.

They don't break up, exactly. Not at first.

They just sort of stop seeing each other. 

The week after the '07 hockey team mess, Nicole holes herself up in closed-door meetings with Nedley while Waverly works on deciphering incantations. The next time they see each other is when Waverly tries to push her way into the Black Badge office, only to find it locked.  

"You need a pass card," a familiar voice says from behind her. 

Waverly turns too quickly; the tray of coffees in her hand sway violently before Nicole catches them, keeping them upright. "Huh?" Waverly asks, her face immediately flushing. 

She's still not over Nicole's haircut. It curls just under her ears and Waverly thinks about running her hands along Nicole's neck and around the back of her head, her fingers threading through her hair and -

"What?" she has to ask again. 

Nicole sighs heavily. "New security measures. All Black Badge employees will need a pass card. Jeremy was supposed to set one up for you."

"Pass cards," Waverly repeats. 

Nicole's shoulders straighten proudly. "Yep," she says, her lips popping on the 'p' sound. "We might not be a big station like the ones in the cities, but we have ordinary citizens here who deserve our protection. And dangerous things come out of that office," Nicole adds. 

"Oh," Waverly breathes out. 

"Nedley's letting me make some changes."

Waverly smiles and dips her head to one side. "That's... that's good."

Nicole nods resolutely, a small smile on her face. "Yeah, it is," she says softly. 

Waverly takes a deep breath and holds it for a moment, her eyes drifting to Nicole's mouth. She told Wynonna they were fine, it was fine, but she hasn't kissed Nicole in seven days; she hasn't hugged her or touched her or spoken to her in seven days. That feels anything but fine. 

"Nicole," she starts.

The door to the Black Badge office swings open. Waverly jumps back to avoid being hit, sending her right into Nicole's side. She feels a pair of sturdy hands on her hips, steadying her so she doesn't go crashing to the floor. Wynonna peers around the door frame. 

"Oh, sorry, Waves."

With Nicole's hands on her hips, seven days starved of them, Waverly doesn't focus immediately. It takes her a moment for her brain to catch up but she nods. "It's fine." She thrusts the carton of coffees at Wynonna. 

Wynonna moans in a way that makes Waverly blush a little. "Shit, hot," she hisses after she takes a sip. 

Waverly rolls her eyes. "Well duh."

Wynonna shrugs and looks up at Nicole before turning her attention back to Waverly. "You coming? We need that big brain of yours."

Nicole's hands drop from her hips. Waverly instantly misses the warmth of them. 

"Right. I'm in the middle of something," she mutters. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah?" Waverly asks, unable to keep the hopefulness out of the question.

Nicole studies her for a moment. "Sure, Waverly," she says. 

It sounds like the same ' _sure'_ from before, in the car, when Waverly felt like the world was moving too fast and she wanted to just be friends. The kind of ' _sure_ ' that means ' _not really_ '. Before Waverly can try to say anything, Nicole is turning sharply on her heel and heading back into Nedley's office, closing the door softly behind her.

Wynonna hands Waverly the coffee with her name scrawled across the lid. "Coming, baby girl?"

Waverly nods wordlessly, her eyes still on Nedley's office. 

Wynonna groans when she realizes the door to the Black Badge office has closed. She fishes into her jacket pocket and comes up with a small card, flashing it across the device on the wall. A small light flashes green and Waverly hears a click as the door unlocks. 

"Can you believe we have  _passcards_  now? Like, what? We're at some resort hotel?" Wynonna rolls her eyes. "I've already lost two of them." 

Waverly sighs softly. "Of course you have."

 

\--

She plans on calling Nicole the next day but they find out the thing that attacked Mercedes Gardener struck again and everything spirals from there. 

Nicole was on the scene, Wynonna said. She took the woman's statement and then passed it off to BBD without any snark. Wynonna says it wistfully, like she wishes Nicole had put up more of a fight. Waverly does too; if Nicole had stayed even another minute, Waverly would have been able to see her. 

Instead, Waverly doubles down on her research, fueled by Wynonna's distress over the thing that attacked her friend -  _a friend_ , she squealed after Wynonna mumbled it - attacking someone else. 

The next day becomes the next day and the day after that and two weeks go. 

Not a single word from Nicole. 

This is new to Waverly. She's had fights before, with Champ, but even when the fights were Waverly's doing, he would be on her doorstep the same day: flowers in hand, a pout on his face. Nicole isn't Champ, though. And even if Waverly knows that she shouldn't have stepped in on Nicole's job, she isn't sure how to begin to apologize for doing something she thought was right. 

She wants Nicole to stay safe; she isn't sure she can apologize for that. 

Nicole doesn't come to the homestead with flowers. She's never at the cop shop when Waverly goes by and if she is, she's good at hiding away until Waverly fumbles with her pass card, swipes it over the locking mechanism, and slips into the Black Badge office. Nicole hasn't even stopped into Shorty's since Doc reopened it, if he's telling the truth. Waverly walks by Dot's Diner on a Wednesday at noon, but she doesn't see Nicole in her regular seat at the counter. 

It's almost like she disappeared from Purgatory as quietly as she arrived. 

 

\---

"You're gonna have to register it, Wynonna."

Waverly perks up at the sound of Nicole's voice. She sees her shadow through the frosted glass of the office door and she has no time to panic because the door is clicking softly and unlocking and there's Nicole.

Waverly's pen skips across her notepad, a hard black line through her notes. 

"Listen, everyone knows about Peacemaker," Wynonna says, ignoring Waverly and the copious amounts of classified research stretched out across the room. "I don't need to register it."

Nicole pulls her hat off, tucking it under her arm. Waverly is transfixed, her eyes unable to pull away from Nicole's fingers tapping on the brim of her hat. It's nervous energy, Waverly knows. Even if Nicole hasn't looked at her, she has to know Waverly is there.

"It's a federal law, Wynonna," Nicole drawls. "Which reminds me, do you even have a license to carry?"

Wynonna sputters. "What, what do I even need that for?"

Nicole groans and presses her palm to her forehead. She rests her elbow on a filing cabinet and finally looks at Waverly. Waverly feels her whole body flush with the attention. 

"Waverly," she says slowly. "Please tell me that you have an LTC for that sawed-off shotgun of yours."

Waverly chews on her bottom lip. "Oops?"

Nicole drops her head and lets it hang for a moment before turning and stomping out of the office. Wynonna stares at Waverly for a moment before she goes to open her mouth, snapping it closed when Nicole stomps back in. She slaps a piece of paper down in front of Wynonna, then drops another carefully in front of Waverly. Her fingers stayed pressed to the page.

"Fill these out," she instructs. She's Nicole the Cop now, all business. Waverly feels a shiver go down her spine. Nicole the Cop is assertive and confident and  _professional_  and Waverly's stomach flops as she thinks about the last time she kissed Nicole and how she threatened that. 

"It'll take a couple days to process," Nicole is saying. "So don't let me see you using those things until I give you your temp license, okay?"

"Hey, Nedley Jr.," Wynonna starts.

"Okay," Waverly cuts in. Nicole gives her a small, grateful smile. 

"Oh, come on, Waves. We-"

"Will follow the law," Waverly says pointedly. She stands up as Nicole nods and turns to head back into the bullpen. "Be right back," she says to Wynonna. 

Wynonna just growls and grabs a pen. 

"Nicole," Waverly calls, reaching for her shoulder. 

Nicole turns quickly, stepping back. Waverly's hand drops to her side. She shoves it into the pocket of her shorts instead and leans shakily against a desk. 

"Hey," she say dumbly. 

Nicole lifts an eyebrow. "Hey," she echoes. 

Waverly takes a deep breath, curling her hand not in her pocket into a tight first. She wants to reach out, tangle her fingers in the sleeve of Nicole's uniform and tug her in; she wants to feel Nicole under her fingers. "I haven't - I miss you," Waverly admits. 

Nicole flinches a little at that. Waverly frowns. She watches Nicole's shoulders relax but it looks forced, intentional.

"Do you... Do you miss me?" she asks, her voice breaking.

“Of course I do,” Nicole breathes out. Her body betrays her again, her feet shuffling forward. She pulls herself to a stop before she reaches Waverly and steps back just as quickly. 

Waverly closes the distance instantly. She gives in and and rolls her fingers into Nicole’s uniform shirt, their hips pressed together. She looks up at Nicole and smoothes out the wrinkles she just twisted into her shirt. “Baby,” she says quietly. 

Nicole’s lips part.

“I miss you,” she repeats. “Fighting with you is the worst. And I’m sorry. I’m sorry about cutting you out of Black Badge.”

Nicole’s mouth tightens, her lips pressed together into a thin line. She shakes her head once and pulls out of Waverly’s grip. “You think I’m still mad at you because you kept me from joining Black Badge?”

It feels like a trick question that Waverly doesn’t know the answer to. It doesn’t stop her from opening her mouth, though. “I told you, it was for -“

“My own good,” Nicole finishes dryly. “God, Waverly.” She runs a hand through her hair. Waverly’s eyes follow the motion, struggling to look back at Nicole’s face. “You really don’t understand, do you?"

“I need to protect you,” Waverly insists.

“I’m a grown woman,” Nicole reminds her. “With a gun.”

Waverly is already shaking her head before Nicole finishes. “You can’t fight everything.”

“Neither can you.”

“I know what I’m doing.”

“Do you really?” Nicole asks. “Because people just keep getting hurt."

Waverly inhales sharply and tries to steady her breathing. This is exactly what she didn’t want; she didn’t want another fight. But Nicole is glaring at her, angrily tucking her hand into her pocket. Nicole runs her hand through her hair again and steps back, shaking her head.

“You don’t understand,” she says again. She looks back towards the bullpen, towards Nedley’s office, before turning to Waverly. “I don’t know if you ever will.” She takes a step back. “I don’t really think you want to."

“Nicole,” Waverly tries.

“This town is more than this curse, Waverly,” Nicole continues over her. She takes another step back. “There are people who live here. Ordinary people who want to go about their business and ordinary people who want to help. But you Earps…” she trails off. She breathes out heavily, her cheeks stained red. “Maybe we shouldn’t…” She runs her hand through her hair again, a nervous habit. “I don’t think we should see each other anymore. Not now. Not until you’re…” She shakes her head and stops speaking.

Waverly barks out a laugh. “Are you breaking up with me?”

Nicole shrugs and looks away. “It’s not like we’re dating anyway, is it?” She looks back at Waverly, then behind her, and sighs. “You can drop your application off to Linda. She’s handling all applications from now on.” She doesn’t give Waverly a chance to say much else, moving across the bullpen, bypassing her desk and heading for the kitchen.

Waverly feels like the whole world dropped out from underneath her feet. She sways to the right and then the left but Wynonna is suddenly there, holding her steady. “I got ya, baby girl,” she murmurs softly into Waverly’s ear.

Waverly can’t help but think that the arms around her are the wrong ones.

 

\---

And just like that, they break up.

Purgatory is a small town, but Waverly never felt like that before the breakup. She loves Purgatory and the small town feel and knowing everyone’s regular drink order. She loves walking down Main Street and being able to say ‘hi’ to everyone and ask about their kids or their aunts or their pigs. 

After the breakup, she never wants to leave the house again. 

If she thought Nicole was hard to find a week ago, she’s everywhere Waverly looks now.

Waverly goes to the post office and Nicole is there explaining PO boxes to old Zeke White. Waverly picks up groceries and Nicole is in the parking lot passing out fliers for an uncoming town meeting. Waverly takes her jeep to Robbie’s garage - it’s making a noise and she doesn’t have the time to try and figure it out - and Nicole is taking a walk around the premises, checking possible safety breaches.

It goes the same every time. 

Waverly leaves and Nicole doesn’t follow. 

It aches deep in her chest, seeing Nicole so close and feeling like she’s so far away. Waverly is a tactile person; she took a quiz. She likes to put her hands on things, to turn them over, to feel each nook and cranny and groove. Nicole is nice to touch. She’s soft and hard and sometimes it feels like the dips in her back, the swell of her hipbone, were made for Waverly’s hands. Her chest aches, her heart breaks, and her hands feel cold and sluggish. She wants to cross Main Street and bury her hands in Nicole’s hair. She wants to wrap her arms around Nicole’s neck. She wants to press her fingers to Nicole’s spine and feel her. 

But Waverly just hangs back, watching Nicole help old women across the street and fish kites out of trees for the neighborhood kids. And she  _aches_.

 

\---

“Ms. Earp,” Nedley says, tipping his hat.

Waverly looks up from the well, a bottle of whisky already in her hand. “Hi Sheriff. Usual?”

Nedley climbs up into a bar stool and nods, placing his hat on the counter. “I didn’t realize you were back working here.”

Waverly shrugs and pushes a glass in front of him. “I’m picking up a few shifts. Helping out until they can hire a bigger staff.”

“Avoiding the station,” Nedley tacks on.

Waverly frowns. “Excuse me?”

Nedley takes a long sip of his drink before looking back at her. “I know you and Deputy Haught have called it quits.”

She wants to tell him it’s none of his business. She wants to tell him to finish his drink and go. Instead, she sighs and shelves the whisky bottle, turning back to the inventory list.

“Can I ask why?” Nedley speaks up after a minute.

“Sheriff,” Waverly starts.

He holds up his hand. “I know I have no business getting involved. But Nicole is… Important. To me  _and_  to this town. And she’s pretty miserable.”

“She doesn’t look it,” Waverly can’t stop herself from mumbling.

Nedley sighs a little and twists a napkin in his hands. “You know, even before your Daddy worked on the force, I knew all about the Earp curse.”

Waverly inhales sharply, the word  _Daddy_ echoing in her head. 

Nedley waves her away, mistaking the bloom of pain in her throat for surprise.. “Oh, I know all about the curse and what goes on here. We’re small town people, Ms. Earp. But we’re not all that small-minded. Not all of us, anyway.”

Waverly checks something off her inventory list before turning her full attention to Nedley. She takes a deep breath and pinches the bridge of her nose between two fingers. “I’m not sure,” she admits.

“Have something to do with secrets?” Nedley asks. He takes another sip from his glass.

Waverly sighs, collapsing against the well, her elbows resting on the counter. “Maybe? She…” She knows if Lucado found out she had even thought the words ‘Black Badge’ she’d be locked in an underground chamber, cut off from everything she loves. For a self-deprecating moment, Waverly wonders,  _Isn’t that where I already am?_  Waverly shakes her head. “Agent Dolls deputized her.”

Nedley curses. “If he thinks he can take my best-“

Waverly shakes her head. “Something happened. We were all instated. Officially. But not Nicole. I couldn’t… I couldn’t stand the idea of her having her life chained to the BBD. And she’s mad about that, I think.”

Nedley drains the last of his glass and sets it down on the counter, sliding off his stool. He puts his hat back on. “Deputy Haught is a smart woman. I’d say she’s almost as smart as you are, and the whole town knows you’re a damn genius,” he says gruffly. “And when you give smart people the runaround? When you tell them they’re wrong even though they know they’re right, well that sure would make me grouchy.” He shrugs. “But what would I know. I ain’t that smart.”

Waverly watches Nedley leave and thinks, for the first time, that he might be exactly that smart.

 

\---

Waverly steels herself and walks into the station with purpose, her shoulders high and straight. Nicole is at her desk, head bent down over a report she seems to be scribbling on. 

“ _I miss you. I want you back. I’m willing to listen to what’s bothering you_ ,” she says to herself. She repeats it one more time and nods to herself, rounding the front counter, her eyes locked on Nicole.

“Baby girl!”

Waverly pulls to a stop and looks towards the Black Badge office. Wynonna is leaning out of it, her ‘ _this is as patient as I can wait_ ’ face on. 

“We need you,” Wynonna says slowly.

Waverly looks at Nicole. Nicole is looking back at her now, the pen in her hand hanging loosely from her fingers. “I was-“

“Operation Dolls,” Wynonna hisses through clenched teeth. She nods impatiently into the office. 

Waverly looks back at Nicole.

Nicole’s eyes are dark and unreadable, her report completely abandoned as she watches Waverly look back and forth between her and Wynonna.

Waverly sighs heavily and Nicole’s lips twitch in a humorless smile.

“Coming,” she says quietly, changing her course.

When she looks back, Nicole is working on her report again. 

Waverly waits for another few moments but Nicole doesn’t look up. 

 

\---

“I don’t know why we’re here,” Wynonna hisses loudly.

Mrs. Messing two rows up turns and glares. Wynonna sticks out her tongue. Waverly elbows her in the side and smiles brightly at Mrs. Messing. The older woman huffs and turns back to face the front of the gym, set up to hold the town’s population on rickety metal folding chairs. Wynonna huffs and slides down in her chair, putting her feet up on chair in front of her.

“It’s a town forum, Wynonna. We’re a part of the town,” Waverly reminds her.

“And this has nothing to do with Haughtmess running this hot mess?” Wynonna asks.

Waverly turns and glares at her sister. “Don’t call her that.”

Wynonna shrugs a little. “Why not? She  _dumped_  you.  _You_.”

“You don’t know anything,” Waverly says, her teeth clenched. 

“Because you won’t tell me,” Wynonna fires back.

“Because I don’t know,” Waverly hisses. She turns to face Wynonna. “Seriously. Leave it alone, Wynonna.”

“I’m still mad at her,” Wynonna says after a moment. 

Waverly takes a deep, steadying breath and opens her mouth to tell Wynonna that the only person people should be angry at is her, but then Nedley is rapping a fist down on the folding table at the front of the room and calling for attention.

“After some research and some recommendations, we have decided to start a Community Oversight Task Force. Now, I don’t know what that means, exactly, so I’m gonna turn it over to the person in charge of this, Deputy Haught here.” Nedley sags back into his seat, leaning back in his chair as Nicole stands up.

“Thanks, Sheriff,” she says kindly, smiling at him. She comes out in front of the table, sitting back on the edge of it. One foot dangles over the floor while the other keeps her steady. She’s not wearing her hat and her uniform is unbuttoned just enough that when Nicole turns to smile at Joey Dugan sitting on his mom’s lap, Waverly can see the sharp cut of her collarbone. She thinks back to that afternoon in her bedroom, where she traced every inch of Nicole until she had her memorized. She’s pulled out of her head when Nicole starts speaking again. “- And get you all involved in how we make laws, how we enforce then, and how we hold up the consequences.”

Someone’s hand goes up. Nicole nods at them. Champ stands up and Waverly groans.

“Yeah, I got a question,” he says. 

Nicole nods at him again. “That’s fine, Champ. Ask away.” She leans back, her hands in her lap.

“Is this group gonna get rid of stupid laws, too? Like having a license to carry my own gun?”

Nicole gives him a small smile. “We can’t abolish federal laws, Champ.” She pauses for a moment. “Having a license to carry a weapon, on your person, in your pocket, is a law everywhere. Not just Purgatory.”

Champ frowns for a moment. “Oh.” He sits back down.

“But things like that,” Nicole continues, talking to the whole group again. “Speed limits, safety checkpoints, whether or not we need increased security during the tourist season. You know this town best,” she says to them. She makes eye contact with a few people and Waverly feels the energy of the room change. There’s a hum, a buzz, as people start to buy in. Waverly glances at Nedley and notices he’s smirking proudly. “You know what we need, what we want. And with your help, we can make sure people stay safe doing regular, run-of-the-mill, ordinary things.” Nicole gestures to Joey Dugan again and the five-year-old comes running up to Nicole, climbing into her lap. “We need to make Purgatory the kind of place where kids like Joey can grow up, be a part of their community, and enjoy their small town life.”

Someone behind Waverly claps and it takes off until the whole gym is applauding. Nicole is grinning at the front of the room, eyes roaming the crowd. She catches Waverly’s eye. Nicole’s smile falters for just a second before she smiles again, tentatively.

The clapping dies down when Nicole quiets down the crowd. “We’re looking for something like five citizens to join. All ages, too, from 18 to Zeke over here,” she says, pointing at Zeke White, the oldest living person in Purgatory. "Those five will be partnering with three deputies and we’ll be overseen by Sheriff Nedley.” She nods towards Linda, sitting next to Nedley. “All applications should be dropped off with Linda at the station, during normal business hours.”

“Anyone can apply?” someone hollers. One of Champ’s friends, Waverly realizes. “Even Champ?”

Nicole nods, smiling. “Sure. Champ would be a great addition to the group.” 

Champ’s friends hoot and holler but Nicole moves on, answering someone else’s question. Waverly watches her work the crowd with ease. She had meant what she said when she told Nicole she liked to watch her work. Nicole  _is_  professional and caring, answering questions carefully and thoughtfully. She explains things in a way that even Joey understands, nodding along from her lap. The meeting breaks up, Nedley offering coffee and donuts set up in the social room off of the main gym area. Nicole lingers at the front of the room, talking to people who come up to her. She high-fives Joey when he slides off her lap and runs back to his mom. Waverly stays in her seat, her hands clenched into fists in her lap, watching Nicole smile at Chrissy Nedley, shake hands with Mayor Hunt, and start a conversation with Becky Hart.

“Down, tiger,” Wynonna whispers in her ear.

“Huh?”

Wynonna grabs her hand, spreading her fist out until her hand is flat. She turns it over and runs her finger over the half moon indents Waverly has pressed into her palm. “Any harder and you’ll bleed.” She looks up to the front of the room. “It’s just Becky Hart. She’s not even into girls.” They both watch Becky reach up and brush her thumb across Nicole’s name tag. “Oh,” Wynonna says. Waverly glares at her. “Maybe it was smudged?” Wynonna offers. Becky leans over and scribbles something down on a scrap of paper, pressing it firmly into Nicole’s hand. “Oh,” Wynonna says again.

Waverly stands up and pushes out of the aisle before Wynonna catches up with her. A few people turn around at the commotion but Waverly ignores them, stomping up to the front of the room, pulling up short as she reaches the table. Nicole looks at her in surprise. 

Becky’s eyes narrow. “Oh, hey, Waverly.” She gestures between Nicole and Waverly. “I heard you’re dating, right?”

“No,” Nicole says.

“Well we-“ Waverly says at the same time.

They both stare at each other.

“Donuts,” Wynonna grunts, leaving the table.

Becky’s smile turns predatory. “Well then.” She turns her attention to Nicole. “Be sure to put that number to use, Deputy  _Haught_ ,” she drawls. She drags her hand across Nicole’s shoulder as she leaves. Waverly’s eyes follow her out the door. When she turns back, Nicole is already around the other side of the table, gathering her things. 

“Nicole,” Waverly says softly.

Nicole ignores her.

“Nicole,” Waverly tries again. “Please.”

Nicole looks up. “What, Waverly?”

Waverly hesitates. “You did really great tonight.”

Nicole pauses for just a moment. “Thanks,” she says gruffly.

“It was your idea, right?”

Nicole nods. “A friend of mine from the Academy just started one in Alberta.”

“I think it’s a great idea,” Waverly says.

Nicole gives her a tiny smile. “Well, thanks.”

Waverly fumbles with the edge of the table for a moment while Nicole stacks her papers into a neat pile.

“Did you need something else?” Nicole asks after a minute.

Waverly shakes her head. “Actually...” she starts, trailing off. She takes a deep breath. “I was wondering if-“

“Donuts,” Wynonna says, thrusting a powered donut into Waverly’s face.

Nicole sighs heavily and shoves her neat pile of papers into a backpack. She pushes past Waverly.

“No, wait,” Waverly says.

Nicole turns sharply. “You know what? When you want to have a conversation without your babysitter, you let me know.”

“Hey,” Wynonna protests. “She’s  _my_  babysitter.”

“Not helping,” Waverly growls at Wynonna, chasing after Nicole. “Nicole, wait. Please.”

Nicole turns around but doesn’t stop walking. She takes careful steps backwards, continuing to put distance between them. “I’m tired of this, Waverly.” 

Waverly tries to catch up to Nicole and curses the heels she picked out for tonight. “I know things keep getting in the way,” she tries.

Nicole scoffs and stops. She looks at Waverly, her eyes tired and heavy. “Things are always going to be in our way. As long as you keep putting them first, they’re always going to be in the way.”

Waverly stops too, frowning. “What do you mean?”

Nicole barks out a laugh. She shakes her head. “I know there are important things in this world, Waverly. In this town. But what we had? That was important too.” She turns back around and starts walking towards the parking lot.

“Have,” Waverly whispers to the streetlights. “What we have.”

 

\--- 

Waverly devises a plan. It has four points, three escape subplans, and one codeword for if she ends up killing Becky Hart before she gets Nicole back.

She gives Becky a fake smile as she rifles through Linda’s paperwork station, trying to seem like she isn’t spying on Nicole.

“Anyway,” Becky says loudly, leaning against Nicole’s desk. She looks over her shoulder for Waverly’s reaction. Becky Hart, Purgatory’s other Stephanie Jones, has never liked the Earps and always made that known. “I hear the cinema is getting a film from this century to run Friday night. What’s it gonna take to get you to come with me?”

Nicole offers Becky a polite smile. “Gosh, I wish I could. But I’m on shift that night.”

Becky and Waverly both frown and look over at the large schedule on the whiteboard near the front door. Another one of Nicole’s ideas: if citizens know who is working when, they might report crimes more frequently, if they have an deputy they prefer. Waverly knows crime reporting has increased during the shifts Nicole works; Nedley won’t shut up about it. But Nicole’s name isn’t on the schedule for Friday night.

Nicole follows Becky’s gaze and nods. “Little League opens Friday night. I’m running the Sheriff’s Department booth.”

Becky frowns a little. “There isn’t a Sheriff’s Department booth at the Little League games.”

Nicole sits up a little straighter, puffing her chest out slightly. “There is now,” she brags. “We’re handing out pocket flashlight whistles. And tootsie pops,” she adds.

“That was my idea. Who doesn’t like a good tootsie pop?” Deputy Hines cuts in as he walks past Nicole. “Hey, Waverly,” he says.

Waverly turns beet red and focuses on the paperwork in her hand - Licensing Your Dog 101. She frowns and puts it back.

“Pocket flashlight whistles,” Becky repeats. She reaches out and presses her hand to Nicole’s shoulder. “That’s a really good idea.”

Nicole flushes and Waverly feels her eyes narrow. When Nicole’s head dips - the way Waverly loves, where she looks up through her eyelashes, embarrassed - Waverly squeezes her hand into a fist, crumpling an informational newsletter on the new Community Oversight Task Force.

“Just doing my part to keep the kids of Purgatory safe,” Nicole says bashfully.

Becky slides a finger under Nicole’s chin and pulls her face back up. 

Waverly wonders if this is what blacking out feels like.

She’s stomping over towards Nicole’s desk when a hand grips her arm and tugs her hard to the left. She stumbles out of the bullpen and into the Black Badge office, turning to spit fire at whoever interrupted her. “Goddamn it, Wynonna. I was-”

Wynonna rolls her eyes. “Just about to end up in prison? For removing Becky Hart’s arm and then beating her with it?”

Waverly eyes narrow. “That’s a good idea.”

Wynonna positions herself in front of the door and holds her hands up. “Okay, but hear me out. If you kill Becky Hart, you are definitely not going to get Nicole back.”

Waverly deflates a little. “Why do you care?” she grumbles. “You don’t even like her.”

Wynonna frowns. “What’re you talking about? Of course I like her.”

Waverly snorts. “You’re always ragging on her. You called her Haught mess.”

“Have you seen her lately?” Wynonna pulls down a blind on the window separating the Black Badge office from the bullpen. She jabs a finger in Nicole’s direction. “She  _is_  a Haught mess. Like, she’s killing the teacher’s pet game. She’s here all the time, starting new ‘task forces’,” Wynonna says, making a face. “And Doc said she was in Shorty’s the other night, talking to him about his security plans. Apparently, she’s hitting every business. Plus she was at Purgatory Elementary reviewing safety protocols with the kids, or something. And now this stuff with Little League. She’s like a robot.” Wynonna pauses. “No, she… Could she be?” She shakes her head. “Not the point.”

“What is the point?” Waverly asks, dropping into a rolling chair. It slides across the office floor. 

Wynonna comes close and pulls the chair back to the table, sitting on the table top, her feet on the chair, holding Waverly in place. “I know what I said about Nicole. And how you’re losing yourself and blah, blah, blah. But I was wrong?” She scrambles when Waverly glares at her. “Yes, I was wrong. Baby girl, you’re miserable."

The blind is still twisted from Wynonna tugging it out of place. Through it, Waverly can see Becky wave goodbye to Nicole. Nicole stares after her for a moment, then shakes her head once, and turns her attention back to her paperwork. Waverly watches Nicole’s head come up, scanning the bullpen before looking back down again.

“She doesn’t know,” Waverly says quietly.

Wynonna frowns. “Know what?”

“That I love her.”

When Wynonna doesn’t say anything, Waverly looks up to find her staring, her mouth hanging open. “But… What?”

Waverly shrugs. “I don’t think she heard me, that night. And things have been… Off, since then. It hasn’t been the right time to tell her.”

Wynonna sighs. “There’s never a perfect time to tell someone that. There’s only…” She sighs again, rubbing beneath her eye quickly. “There’s only regrets for not saying it when you should have.”

Waverly looks up at Wynonna and puts a hand on her knee. “Hey, Wy…”

Wynonna shrugs and hops off the table. “But we’re talking about you now. And forever. We  _never_  have to talk about me. And so how’re we going to get her back?”

Waverly’s mouth open and closes uselessly.

Wynonna shrugs again. “She’s my friend too,” she says quietly.

Waverly smiles slowly. “Well. You can start by stop interrupting me every time I try to talk to her.”

“No promises. What else?"

 

\--- 

Wynonna snorts as a kid runs past her. She tosses a handful of popcorn into her mouth. “Shorty’s Shooters. Hilarious.” She fishes out her phone. “I wonder if Doc knows he’s sponsoring a Little League team.”

Waverly shrugs, eyes scanning the vendors, trying to spot the Sheriff’s Department booth. It’s almost like the whole town showed up for opening night. Every Little League team, six in all, are playing tonight - short innings, every bats kind of thing. Shorty’s Shooters are playing Henry’s Hardware Hitters in the first game. Waverly finally spots the blue tent with the department logo on it.

“There,” she points out. She starts cutting through the crowd only to be pulled back by Wynonna. “What?”

“What’s the plan?” Wynonna asks.

Waverly shrugs. “I don’t know. I don’t have one.”

“I thought you were a  _planner_ ,” Wynonna teases.

“I regret telling you that story.”

Wynonna hooks an arm through Waverly’s and starts winding through the crowd. “This is going to be fun.”

They cut through the crowd and get back into the foot traffic, strolling idly through the tents, sponsors, and teams. The Sheriff’s Department booth gets closer and Waverly can hear Nicole now, talking to someone about car seats.

“Yeah,” Nicole is saying as Waverly gets closer. “It really is any kind of carseat. Bring a manual if you have one but if you don’t, it’s not big deal. We can find the manual online. There’s a group out in the city who offers those kind of resources for free online.” 

A woman Waverly vaguely recognizes is smiling at Nicole.

“And if you don’t have a car seat,” Nicole continues. “You just stop by the station and see me and we’ll get one for you. We ran a donation drive a few weeks back, did you hear about it?”

Wynonna snorts. “She’s like the poor man’s Batman.”

Waverly sighs softly, eyes locked on Nicole. “Huh?”

“Nothing,” Wynonna groans. “You’re just mooning over her. Like she’s a piece of meat.”

“Imagine a donut,” Waverly says.

Wynonna’s eyes glaze over. “Okay, I understand.” She shakes her head a few times. “Come on. Game time.”

“Game time? But we don’t even have a-“

“Hi,” Nicole says slowly.

Waverly straightens out the pocket flashlight whistles thats she knocked over when Wynonna pushed her into the table. She looks up, her face flushed. “Hi.”

“Oh. Wow,” Wynonna says flatly. “Things. To do.” She doesn’t look at either of them as she walks off towards the bleachers. 

Waverly snickers and looks at Nicole. 

“She has no tact,” Nicole says.

“None,” Waverly agrees. She fiddles with a pocket flashlight whistle, turning the light on and off. “Hi.”

“You said that already,” Nicole points out.

“You’re a good police deputy,” Waverly jokes.

Nicole’s eyes flash and her wall comes slamming down again, blocking Waverly out. “What can I do for you?” she asks, her voice tight.

Waverly sighs and reaches out, stopping short of touching Nicole’s hand. “No, I meant…” She shakes her head. “Let me start over. Hi. I like these things.” She twirls the pocket flashlight whistle in her hand. “They’re much cooler than tootsie pops.”

“Don’t let Hines hear that,” Nicole says after a moment. “He’s very proud of himself.”

Waverly looks around the park, her brain rapid-firing as she tries to come up with something, anything to say. 

Nicole beats her to it. “I heard Dolls is back,” she says quietly.

Waverly brightens at that. “Yeah! He’s still, like, on the down low. But he’s in town. And Doc got the serum worked out and… And you didn’t know about the serum.”

Nicole sighs. “No. And let me guess. You can’t tell me.”

Technically, no. Technically, Waverly can’t tell Nicole or she’ll face whatever death penalty Lucado can come up with. But the light in Nicole’s eyes is fading quickly and Waverly can’t stand it, not again. So she takes a deep breath and she tells her.

“Dolls is a lizard man!” she practically shouts. She looks around, lowers her voice, and tries again. “I mean, the Black Badge did some shady things and now he’s, like, a weird supernatural version of Captain America.”

Nicole blinks a few times before her mouth splits in a wide grin. “I knew it!” she hisses. “He’s too… He’s too everything.”

Waverly smirks a little. “Yes, he is.”

“So Doc was working on a serum?”

Waverly leans a little across the table, mirroring Nicole’s excitement. “The BBD was drugging Dolls, like, on a regular schedule. And Doc replicated the serum because  _obviously_  the BBD isn’t going to give Dolls anymore. Doc basically saved Dolls’ life.”

“I thought Henry hated Dolls,” Nicole says.

“Me too!” Waverly squeals. “But you know what they say, there’s a fine line and all.”

Nicole grins at Waverly, her smile wide and unfiltered. Waverly feels the ache in her chest loosen, replaced by a warmth spreading from her stomach out to the tips of her toes and fingers. She giggles a little, giddy with being so close to Nicole for the first time in so long. 

“We should talk,” she breathes out, afraid to speak louder than a whisper. She doesn’t want to break the spell they’ve fallen under.

Nicole is still leaning over the table, her eyes dropping to Waverly’s mouth. “Yeah,” she whispers back. “We should.”

“I miss you,” Waverly chances.

Nicole blinks and seems to come back to reality. Waverly curses under her breath and straightens back up. Nicole grabs for her hand, her touch light and brief. It reminds her of Shorty’s memorial, reaching for Nicole even as she pulled away.

“I miss you too, Waves,” Nicole says quietly. “Maybe… What’re you doing tomorrow?”

“Free,” Waverly says quickly. “All day.”

Nicole smiles a little. “I’m doing something in the morning. Installing car seats with the fire department,” she adds. “But tomorrow afternoon? Like… 3?”

Waverly is already nodding before Nicole finishes asking the question. “Yes,” she breathes out, in case Nicole mistakes her nodding for anything else.

Nicole’s smile widens. “Okay, good.”

“Good,” Waverly echoes.

They stare at each other for a moment before someone hip-height bumps into Waverly. She knocks a placard off Nicole’s table and picks it up sheepishly, placing it back down on the table.

“Well, the game is starting,” Waverly says.

Nicole nods. “Sure is.”

“And Wynonna is by herself.”

“Sure is,” Nicole repeats.

“At a little kid’s baseball game,” Waverly adds.

Nicole’s eyes widen. “Oh.”

Waverly snorts. “So I’m gonna go before she ruins the lives of small children,” she teases. She reaches forward, her hand drifting across Nicole’s arm gently. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she promises.

She turns, feeling as light as air, and scans the crowd for Wynonna.

This time when she turns around, Nicole is looking right at her.

 

\---

Waverly is two minutes - 120 torturous clicks - away from pulling the clock off the wall and smashing it into a hundred tiny pieces. It’s 3:15 now and Nicole is never more than 5 minutes early for everything. Waverly had been sitting on the couch at 2:30, leg bouncing in tune with the ticking clock. But now it’s 3:15 and her phone is silent - no apology text or call - and the gravel in the driveway is pristine - no cars have run over it since Wynonna left this morning - and Waverly is sitting in her empty house, waiting for a girl who, apparently, isn’t going to show up. 

114 clicks later and she’s standing up, reaching for the clock, when she hears the gravel crunching in the driveway, a tire spinning out. Waverly abandons the clocks and sits back down on the couch, determined to play it cool; determined to act like she felt the whole world was being sucked out of her soul with every passing minute Nicole wasn’t here. 

Except the door flings open and Wynonna is there, panting heavily, her hair sticking to her face.

Waverly stands instantly. “What the hell?”

“I need,” Wynonna pants. “I need water.”

Waverly pours her a glass quickly and watches in mild disgust as Wynonna drains the whole glass in one pull. Wynonna puts down the glass, wipes her mouth with the back of her hand, and takes a deep breath.

“So I need you not to freak out,” she says calmly.

 

\---

“Opposite of  _not_  freaking out, baby girl,” Wynonna yells over the wind whipping through the Jeep windows. 

Waverly ignores Wynonna, taking the turn onto Lower Road, the one that goes into town, too quickly. Wynonna slams into the passenger side of the Jeep. Waverly steps harder on the accelerator.

“Seriously!” Wynonna shouts again.

Waverly takes her foot off the gas and spares a moment to look at Wynonna. “How long?” she asks over the wind tunnel.

Wynonna flinches. “A few hours,” she admits.

“A few hours!” Waverly echoes. “My girlfriend has been in a hostage situation for  _a few hours_  and you’re only telling me  _now_!”

Wynonna rolls her eyes and says something Waverly doesn’t catch. 

They’re pulling into town too quickly to be legal but as she pulls into the middle school parking lot, every cop in town is focused on something else. She barely pulls the Jeep to a stop before she’s jumping out, running towards Nedley.

“Woah there,” Nedley says as she tries to blow past him. Doc catches her around the middle and Nedley sighs in relief. “Listen,” he tries to say. Waverly is struggling in Doc’s hold, trying to get past him. She flails her arms, pulls her legs up and tries to use them as leverage. She swings at Nedley when he steps in close to reason with her. She pushes Doc’s new hat off his hat. “Goddamnit, Waverly!” Nedley finally shouts.

She stills instantly, panting as the rush of adrenaline catches up to her. Doc puts her down slowly, only letting go when she nods to him. She turns to Nedley expectantly.

Nedley runs a hand through his hair. “I can’t-“

“Don’t you give me some crap about protocol,” she hisses. “I want to know.”

“It’s standard-“

Waverly advances on Nedley, gripping his collar and tugging him down slightly. “The last hostage situation in this town lost me someone I loved. I won’t lose anyone else,” she says in a tight, determined voice. 

Nedley stares at her blankly.

“It’s  _Nicole_ ,” she says, her voice breaking on the name. “She’s important to you. She’s important to me.”

Nedley sighs at that, slowly unpeeling her fist from his jacket. “I know, Waverly.” He straightens up a little. “Okay,” he says, sliding into professional mode. “What we know is that Toby Gibson was the last parent to show up for the car seat installation. He’s been a little off since his wife, you remember Eileen? She went to Calgary with some guy she met online. Anyway, he’s got two girls. I don’t know what set him off but he’s got those girls, Nicole, and two volunteer firefighters.”

“Weapon?” Wynonna asks, coming up beside him.

“Gun, one, as far as I know.” Nedley fiddles with a radio they have set up under a canopy. “Wasn’t able to get much information. I think they smashed Nicole’s walkie.”

“She loved that walkie,” Wynonna says sadly.

Waverly ignores the both of them. “What are his demands?”

“Besides immunity, he hasn’t mentioned anything.” Nedley taps his fingers against his belt. “I’m not sure what - Waverly!”

Waverly ignores him, pushing past the sawhorses put up to block off the parking lot. She ignores Doc hollering her name and the half a dozen deputies shouting for her to get back behind the line. She hears footsteps behind her and then Wynonna is at her elbow, stopping her. 

“Don’t you dare tell me-“

Wynonna pushes her shotgun into her hands. “Storming a hostage situation? Totally my jam. I’m not stopping you. I’m coming with.” She pulls Peacemaker from her side and slides a hand down the barrel. “Let’s go get our girl.”

Waverly pumps the shotgun and holds it in front of her as they push open the doors to the middle school. 

“I see now why Nicole is so concerned about security,” Wynonna mutters. She tries a classroom door and it swings open easily. “This place is prime for some B & E. I mean, you don’t even need to B.”

Waverly ignores her and peeks around another open door.

“Nedley said they were doing the installs in the cafeteria?” Wynonna says. “Can you, like, say something, dude? You’re kind of creeping me out with the Silent Bob routine.”

“If he touches one hair on her head, I’ll kill him,” Waverly growls.

Wynonna stops for a second and frowns. “Actually, go back to Silent Bob. Less creepy.”

Waverly shushes her and lifts her gun higher, gesturing towards a set of double doors ten feet to the right. Wynonna pulls her fingers over her mouth in a ‘zipper’ and nods to Waverly. They slide up to the door and Waverly presses her ear against it, trying to catch any noise. The doors are heavy, though, and the blood pumping in her ears is too loud. So she pulls back and pushes the front of her shotgun against the door and nudges slowly. The door opens noiselessly and Nicole’s voice filters out.

“-member what I said, Toby? Now, Jimmy and Hank here need some medical attention. And these girls, they need to go home, Toby,” Nicole is saying.

Waverly’s heart stops in her chest. Jimmy Howe and Hank Redding, her brain supplies.  _If they’re hurt, maybe Nicole is too_ , she thinks.  _Maybe Nicole has been shot. Maybe she’s bleeding. Maybe she’s dying_. Wynonna pressing up behind her pulls her back to the real world.

“I don’t know what to do,” Waverly hears someone cry.

Waverly nudges her gun forward a bit, enough so she can see into the small cafeteria. She can spot Jimmy and Hank sitting on the floor. Jimmy has his hand pressed against his arm, blood dried between his fingers. Hank is slumped next to him, a cut across his forehead that bled down his face and neck under his shirt. She can barely see two sets of sneakers, swinging in the air, hanging off a table. She can’t see Nicole.

“You make the right choice, Toby,” Nicole says kindly.

“I’ve already...” Toby trails off. “I already hurt people.”

“I know,” Nicole soothes. “But just because you did a bad thing, that doesn’t mean you should add ten more bad things on top of it.” Her voice drops low. “These girls need you, Toby. And you can’t be there for them if you’re doing 5 to 10 in Saskatchewan Federal Penitentiary.”

Toby lets out a strangled noise. “They’ll shoot me when I get out there.”

Waverly pushes through the door a little more and see Nicole now, in one piece, her uniform disheveled. She’s shaking her head, her hair curled up around the edges. 

Waverly loves her.

“I swear to you I won’t let that happen,” Nicole promises. She pushes up her shirt sleeve. “Let’s do this, okay? Together. We’re going to send those girls out. Katie, get your sister,” she tells the taller girl. She hops off the table and reaches up to take her sister down. “I want you to go back down the hall and out the front doors, okay?”

Toby twitches and shakes his head. “No. No, they’ll take the girls.”

Nicole holds her hands up in the air. “Listen, listen. Give me my phone back and I’ll call someone. She’ll be here in ten, fifteen minutes tops. You know Waverly Earp, right?”

Toby nods, his face twisted in confusion. “She’s the normal one, right?”

Wynonna makes a face next to her. Nicole snorts a little.

“Sure,” she agrees. “She’s real normal. She’s my…” Nicole trails off and Waverly frowns. “She’ll come if I ask her to, okay? And then she can meet the girls at the door? She’ll hold onto them until we figure this all out, okay?” Nicole’s voice is warm and calm and Waverly watches, amazed, as Toby eventually nods.

Wynonna smacks her. “We better get in there before your phone goes off and Toby loses his cool,” she hisses.

Waverly quickly puts her gun down, glaring at Wynonna until she holsters Peacemaker. “On three,” she whispers.

“This reminds me of the time I jumped out of the wrong birthday cake,” Wynonna mutters.

Waverly pauses for a moment, frowns, then shakes her head and counts down, pushing her hands flat against the doors. She opens it slowly and catches Nicole’s attention quickly. Nicole’s eyes are wide, scared, and her mouth drops open.

“Did someone call for me?” she asks, going for funny and falling flat. Nicole has her phone in her hand, her finger hovering over the screen. She looks at her phone, confused, and then presses a button, pocketing it. “You guys remember my sister?”

Wynonna lifts a hand and drops it just as quickly. “‘Sup?”

Nicole is still staring at Waverly. “You’re here,” she says finally.

Waverly nods and swallows heavily. “You know what they say. My ears were ringing.”

Toby stares at her, his eyes swinging between her and Wynonna. He shakes his head and presses a hand to his forehead. “I don’t understand.”

Nicole turns her attention back to Toby and smiles crookedly. “Well, there you go. Waverly is gonna walk right back out of here with Katie and Ashley, okay?” her voice has an edge to it that Waverly just barely catches. “Girls,” she says. “Go see Ms. Waverly.”

Waverly crouches down a little, holding out a hand for the littlest girl. “You must be Ashley,” she says lightly. “Can I pick you up?” Ashley settles on her hip and Waverly laces her free hand in Katie’s. 

“And Waverly is going to stay with them until you and I get out there,” Nicole tells Toby. “And Wynonna is going to make herself useful too,” Nicole says pointedly, her eyes straying to Jimmy and Hank.

“Huh?” Wynonna asks. “Oh, right.” She walks over and kicks at the bottom of Jimmy's shoe. “Can you walk? Cool. Help me lift this guy.” They get Hank off the ground and Wynonna holds him up.

Waverly looks back to Nicole. “You’re coming.” It’s not a question; she’s not leaving without Nicole.

Nicole turns to look at Toby. “What do you say, Toby?”

Toby looks wildly between his daughters, Nicole, and Hank. Eventually, he nods and takes a shaky step forward. Nicole stands in front of him, her hands out, palms flat up towards the ceiling. 

“The gun,” she prompts.

Slowly, Toby puts his gun in her hand. Nicole breaks it down quickly, tucking the cartridge in her pocket and the piece in the empty holster on her side. Waverly lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding and feels Ashley tuck her head into her neck. They lead the group out of the cafeteria. Waverly pauses for moment, picking up her shotgun and handing it to Nicole. Nicole narrows her eyes and sigh but takes the shotgun and holds it tightly in one arm, the other wrapped loose around Toby’s shoulders. 

They make a strange and sad parade of people: Waverly staggering under the weight of a five-year-old, Wynonna stumbling as she tries to hold up Hank, and Nicole with a sawed off shotgun under one arm and a hostage-taker under the other. 

Waverly lets go of Katie’s hand so she can open the door and then takes her hand again blinking a little as they go back out into the afternoon sunshine. She can hear the shouts and whoops and then a cloud of deputies descend on them. Waverly holds tightly to Katie and Ashley but Wynonna unloads Hank and walks Jimmy to a nearby ambulance. She reaches for Ashley and takes her from Waverly’s arms, letting Katie attach to her belt. Wynonna tilts her head in Nicole’s direction. Waverly doesn’t wait for another hint. She slides in behind Nicole, first unloading the broken down handgun from her holster, then her shotgun. Nicole uses her free hand to guide Toby towards the department vehicle, sliding him into the backseat. She slams the door shut and exhales loudly.

Waverly steps forward, ready to put down her shotgun and get the girl, but someone pushes past her and grabs Nicole.

“Goddamnit, Haught,” Nedley growls. He’s got her by the collar, his eyes scanning her face and arms. “You’re not hurt, are you?”

Nicole’s lips twitch. “No, Sheriff.”

Nedley glares. “Don’t you smirk at me, hotshot. You should have never walked back in there.”

Waverly’s mouth drops. “You went  _back_  inside?”

Nicole has the decency to look sheepish now. She ducks her head as much as she can with Nedley’s hands at her collar. “Waves,” she starts. She looks back at Nedley.

He coughs and nods, letting her go and patting her awkwardly on the shoulder. “Uh, good work, Deputy Haught. We’ll debrief back at the station. Try and remember what you said, because it’s going to be the new protocol for hostage situations.” He nods again and shuffles off.

“ _Back_  inside,” Waverly repeats. She advances on Nicole.

Nicole takes a few quick steps backwards, hands up in surrender. “Waverly, there were little girls in there. And-and…” She suddenly stops and straightens up, Waverly misjudging and bumping into her. “And I’m good at my job.”

“I know that,” Waverly says, her hands on Nicole’s hips.

Nicole shakes her head. “No. I’m good at my job. I’m  _great_  at it. Nedley wants me to be Sheriff, when he retires.”

Waverly’s hands slide around Nicole’s waist. “Really?” she breathes out. “Baby, that’s great.”

Nicole nods. “It’s because I’m good at my job. I know what I’m doing.”

“I know that,” Waverly says again.

Nicole opens her mouth once, snaps it closed, and opens it a second time before she says, “You don’t act like you know that.” Her eyes are wide, like she can’t believe she just said that. Her hands at Waverly’s neck soothe the sting of the words. “You say that you know I’m a good deputy, but you act like I’ve never seen a gun before. You hide things from me, big things. The kind of things that come after me if they can’t get to you. And you jump in on my job all the time. Tucker Gardener?” Nicole makes a face. "I know  _now_ , I talked to Nedley. But to call me out in the middle of a crowd like that? It severs my whole reputation, clear in half.” She twists the ends of Waverly’s ponytail around her finger. “I’m not saying you can’t ever call me out on my shit. You want to be mad because I walked back into a hostage situation,  _be mad_. But be mad at home, where no one can see us. Okay?”

Waverly’s fingers pinch the loose fabric of Nicole’s shirt. “You’re not mad about the BBD,” she says quietly.

Nicole shrugs one shoulder. “I was. But you know what? I can do just as much good as a deputy than I could as an agent.”

“Sheriff,” Waverly corrects.

“Someday, yeah. Someday,” Nicole says wistfully. “But for real, Waves. You need to talk to me. I’m not Champ. I’m not even Wynonna. I don’t like ‘shoot first, talk later’. It’s not my style. I’m more of a…”

“Talk first, shoot together?” Waverly asks.

Nicole smiles. “That’s one way of saying it.” She pauses, her fingers still twisting Waverly’s hair end over end. "I meant what I said. I want to be by your side. Not in front of you, not behind you. Next to you."

Waverly exhales noisily, her eyes burning.

Nicole chews on her bottom lip. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” Waverly breathes out. “I… Nicole, I…”

Nicole tips her head to one side. “What?”

“I want to kiss you,” Waverly says, chickening out. “But you’re in uniform and on the clock and I know -  _I knew_  - boundaries are important and I just want to make sure that-“

Nicole cuts her off gently, pressing her lips to Waverly’s. She’s in the middle of a vowel and her mouth is hanging open but Nicole leans in anyway, her hands pressing against the back of Waverly’s neck as she runs her tongue along Waverly’s bottom lip.

Distantly, she hears Wynonna say, “ _hey, woah! public tongue_!” and she braces herself for Nicole to pull away, look down sheepishly, toe the pavement, and ask Waverly to come back to her place.

Instead, she feels a hand fall from the back of her neck and there’s the soft  _thwack_! of flesh meeting flesh. She pulls back just enough to see past Nicole to Wynonna, holding her cheek and fighting off a smirk. 

“You hit me!” she shouts at Nicole. “Oh, don’t you worry, Haughtpants. I’ll get you. And your little… uh, cat too.”

“Wynonna,” Waverly growls, pulling away a fraction of an inch. “Shut up."

She feels Nicole smile against her lips.


End file.
